Danielle Stoner was in her teens when her mother ran her first road race, only to be followed by another and another. When mother hinted to daughter that it might be fun for them to race together, Stoner did not bite.

About five years ago something changed. Stoner decided to give competitive running a try and found she enjoyed the feeling of freedom and calm it gave her. Now it’s a ritual for Stoner and her 55-year-old mother Teri Furlani to run the KeyBank Vermont City Marathon as a two-woman relay team, each logging 13 miles.

When the two South Burlington residents don their race bibs May 26, it will be the fourth time they have run as a mother-daughter team in the Burlington event. Their team was called “Just Jack” after Stoner’s son was born, and now with the advent of a daughter, it’s called “Just Jack and Alice.”

Stoner works full-time and her husband is also busy as a chef at Starry Night Cafe in Ferrisburgh. Even with small children and a demanding job, Stoner has ambitions for the race. She and her mother are hoping to finish their legs in around two hours — for a total of four, not a winning time but a respectable one.

Other family members will be running or cheering when mother and daughter meet up at the finish line.

Running is a fun and healthy way for them to be together and motivate one another to do their personal best, mother and daughter said.

“It’s wonderful,” said Furlani, who works at G.E. Healthcare.

Stoner now runs about 30 miles a week — often pushing her 3-year-old and nine-month-old in a jogger — and is perhaps even more gung ho about the sport than her mother. The fitness aspect is good, but it’s not the sport’s main appeal for her.

“It’s relaxing,” Stoner said. “It’s the one time when you don’t have to focus on anything else.”

Although Furlani still runs slightly faster than her daughter — she’s been at it longer — these days Stoner is often the one signing them up for races and she’s closing the distance between them.

(Page 2 of 2)

Furlani confesses that when her daughter signs them up for a race, she occasionally wonders: Do I have the energy for this?

Mostly the answer is yes. While Furlani grew up in a big, active family, she did not play competitive sports in school and she’s enjoyed blossoming into an athlete in middle age. She runs about 30 miles a week and doesn’t blink at the prospect of a ten-mile training run.

The two women have different ambitions for their running futures. Stoner would like to go for a full marathon. “I want to someday,” she said.

Her mother hopes to keep racing but doesn’t see anything over 13 miles in her future. The more time-consuming training regimen required for a marathon doesn’t appeal to Furlani. “I’m content with the half-marathon,’’ she said.

Their tips for becoming a runner are basic.

Start by setting a goal for the amount of time you want to spend running and don’t worry about speed, suggested Stoner. If you need to alternate between walking and running, go ahead, but keep getting out there. Eventually speed will come with mileage, Stoner said.

Furlani suggests finding a first race that benefits a cause you care about. Sign up with friends or family to make it social, she added. Don’t obsess about your time or the runners who pass you by.